


Becoming Mates

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [43]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Becoming Mates, Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Fluff, Misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2018-11-05
Packaged: 2019-08-19 03:02:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16526069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: Keith and Lance finally become mates.





	Becoming Mates

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt:
> 
> "Hi if you take requests it would be cool to see lance and keith finally become official mates."

It wasn’t an odd occurrence for Keith to go visit his friends for a few days. His pack never tried to stop him, as Keith was always so excited to see his friends and his boyfriend. 

Whenever Keith returned home, his pack spent the day with him since they had missed him while he was gone, even if it had been a few days. When he first stepped out of the pod, Keith would always find himself being scented and sniffed by each member of his pack. He had been confused as first, but Ulaz explained that it was a more primitive Galran instinct in order to insure their pack member wasn’t harmed, before knowledge of various wounds and illnesses became widely known. It was a reassuring thing to do for the pack as well. 

When Keith arrived home from his visit, he grinned when he laid eyes on his pack, all waiting patiently for him. He bounded towards them, gasping in surprise when he was scooped into Thace’s arms and held securely. He instantly felt multiple noses scenting him, purring as the sensation and he laid his head on Thace’s shoulder. 

-

Ulaz sniffed cautiously at Keith. There had been a few incidents of spies disguising themselves as a blade, their scent being the only thing that gave them away. Though it was unlikely to be the case with Keith, but he didn’t want to take chances. 

However, when he sniffed at Keith, he had to do a double take and sniff again to assure himself that he had actually smelt when he had. A smile spread across his face as he nuzzled Keith.

“Congratulations on your mating, Keith. Lance will be a fine mate for you.” He said. Keith’s brows furrowed in confusion and he tilted his head.

“Mating? Lance and I haven’t even talked about being mates, yet.” Keith said. Antok smiled and tickled Keith’s cheek with his tail.

“Oh, my, it must have been a natural transition, then. You know, that is how Kolivan and I became mates.” Antok said, nuzzling Kolivan and pulling him close. Kolivan laughed and laid his head on Antok’s bicep with a content sigh. 

“What do you mean, natural transition? I’m not Lance’s official mate yet.” Keith said.

“Actually, you are. Your scent has changed to reflect that you and Lance are mates, so that no other Galra will attempt to claim you as their own. You said you haven’t even discussed being mates, so it was a natural transition. Like Antok said, its how he and Kolivan became mates, and it becomes a natural thing, and your scent changes to reflect your mutual feelings of being mates.” Thace explained. He made a sound of confusion as Keith squawked in shock and whimpered. 

“Whatever is the matter, kit? This is a good thing!” Kolivan said. Keith shook his head.

“No! We never discussed being mates! He probably doesn’t even know we are now! God, he’s going to be so mad! We promised we would always discuss important things with each other.” Keith said. Antok cooed softly and pulled Keith close.

“No, kit. The natural change to mates occurs when both parties feel the deep bond of mates. He wanted this, though I will agree he may be surprised at the sudden change. But not mad.” He said, nuzzling Keith until he relaxed.

“But you don’t understand! Human love is different! Humans fall in love with someone and they think they’re the one and they want to become mates but they could be mistaken because they’re not really the one! Lance may mistakenly think I’m the one but what if he finds out that I’m not?!” Keith said. His pack members blinked in confusion; usually, the reaction to finding out about a natural transition to being mates was elation, not the panic that Keith was showing. 

“Kit, everything will be okay. I can assure you the universe works in weird ways.” Krolia said, running her fingers through Keith’s hair. 

“This will pose some complications, though. I’m not opposed to Keith and Lance becoming mates, however.” Ulaz said. Thace looked at him in confusion, making a curious chirp. “It is disturbing and uncomfortable for mates to be separated for longer than a couple of days. It will not take long for Keith to get irritable and upset without his mate, but Lance is always so far away. And it is not like he can move in with us, he has important duties as a paladin of Voltron.” Ulaz explained. Krolia winced as she held Keith close, grooming at his hair.

“Indeed, it will. We will have to come up with a solution. We have already found that video calls do not work, as we have found with Antok and Kolivan. I do not want my kit to be irritable without his mate.” She said. Acxa shuffled close and nuzzled Keith, purring.

“We must celebrate, though! Becoming mates is a big thing!” Acxa said. Regris nodded, jumping up and down slightly in excitement for his little brother. Krolia smiled at her other two kits.

“We will have a celebration soon, I have no doubt about that. Your fathers wouldn’t let such a joyous thing go uncelebrated. However, it will have to be pushed back until we can come up with a solution to the separation problem.” Krolia said. Regris cheered and hugged Keith. 

“I need to let Lance know.” Keith said. Kolivan nodded in understanding as he handed Keith his datapad. Keith smiled as he pulled up a video chat with Lance. It rang a few times before Lance answered, a face mask on his face as he pampered himself before bed.

“Miss me already, babe?” Lance asked teasingly, though there was no heat to his words. Keith smiled and laughed quietly.

“More than you know, Lance. Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” Keith said. Lance tilted his head, his full attention being brought to the conversation. 

“What’s up, hun?” He asked. 

“Well, uh… When I was visiting… Something happened.” Keith started. Lance’s face perfectly portrayed his confusion.

“Was it bad? Unless Galra can get pregnant without any sexual contact, I can’t think of anything that could be changed.” Lance said. Keith shook his head.

“No! It wasn’t bad, just… I think someone else should explain.” Keith said. Thace gently took the datapad from Keith’s grip.

“Well, Lance, while you and Keith were visiting recently, your scents, or at least Keith’s, I don’t know if humans have scents, changed to reflect the fact that you were mates. It was a natural transition, meaning that the scents changed in response to both parties’ mutual desire to be mates. Now, I know you and Keith have never discussed being mates, that is what is happening.” Thace explained. Lance looked confused for a moment before his grinned.

“Keith, we’re like Galra-married?! That’s awesome!” He said. Keith looked up and grinned.

“You’re not mad?” He clarified.

“No! Why on earth would I be mad? We’re basically married!” Lance said. “But, when we get back to earth, can we still have an earth wedding? Like, with both of our families and friends?” He asked. 

“Of course we can! Though, my pack does want to celebrate together soon.” Keith said. He made a noise of surprise when Kolivan took the datapad from him.

“There is a small issue, though. Galra get very irritated and upset if they are not near their mate for longer than a couple of days. With your crucial role for Voltron, we have not thought of a good solution.” Kolivan said. Lance nodded and thought for a second. 

“Well… I could always talk to Coran or Allura about it? I mean, they were around during the days of the old paladins, and Zarkon was getting with and Altean and all, and they had different jobs to do. Maybe they would know how to handle it?” Lance suggested. 

“That is a fine idea, Lance. Very good thinking.” Antok said. Lance blushed at the praise and shook his head.

“I was just thinking about what we could do. It really isn’t a big deal.” Lance insisted.

“No, it is a big deal. You may have just come up with an idea to keep Keith from being irritable and upset most of the time.” Antok said. Lance shrugged a bit and smiled shyly. 

“I’ll talk to them, then. Hey, for now, though, if Keith’s getting upset because of the whole mate separation thing, you guys can come visit if time allows.” Lance said. Kolivan nodded and pulled Keith close.

“We will. I love you, Lance.” Keith said.

“I love you too, babe.” Lance said, ending the call. Keith whined quietly and leaned against Kolivan miserably. He missed his mate too much already. 

“Let us go get some food, kit.” He said. He urged Keith in the direction of the dining hall, smiling when the youngest kit perked up at the smell of the food. He eagerly began to pile food onto his plate, making sure it was a balanced meal lest Ulaz lecture him. Keith sat down between Ulaz and Regris, humming quietly as he ate. He laughed when Regris playfully took a piece of food off of his plate, retaliating by stealing a piece of food off of Regris’ plate. 

It didn’t take long for Keith to finish his food, letting himself be led to the pack nest. He laid down and rolled around for a few seconds before settling down. He chirped quietly and nuzzled Acxa, curling up with her. Krolia smiled and covered them both with a blanket, rumbling to them as she laid down close by. Regris curled up on Antok, purring as the largest pack member wrapped himself protectively around the oldest kit. Regris wrapped his tail around Antok with a smile as he drifted off to sleep. Antok laughed quietly, nuzzling Kolivan when he nestled against his other side. 

Ulaz and Thace settled down in the middle of the groups, smiling quietly. Ulaz, being the slightly smaller of the two galra, curled up in Thace’s embrace with his head tucked against Thace’s chest as he fell asleep. 

-

As Ulaz had predicted, it had taken about two days for Keith to start getting irritable over being separated from his mate. None of the adults were surprised at Keith’s behavior, knowing that it was a more intense sensation the first time mates were separated. 

Krolia looked over when she heard Keith’s datapad start to ring. Looking over, she saw Lance’s contact information on the screen, smiling as she answered her call. To her surprise, it was actually Pidge and Hunk. 

“Okay, Keith needs to come over right now.” Pidge said. Krolia’s ears flicked in confusion and she tilted her head.

“I mean, I agree, but why?” She asked curiously.

“Well, you know how Keith and Lance are mates now? I guess some Galra instincts were somehow shifted to him? He’s been crying for Keith all day.” Hunk explained. Krolia smiled and looked over at Keith.

“Well, I wouldn’t be surprised. It has been reported that other species begin to experience Galra mate instincts if they become a Galra’s mate.” Krolia explained. “We will be over soon. We were actually about to come over anyway. Keith’s been upset all day over his separation from Lance.” Krolia said. Pidge nodded and smiled, ending the call. 

Krolia grabbed the bag of clothes that they usually packed for short trips, herding her three kits onto the pod. Antok, Kolivan, and Thace were already on the ship, with Thace herding the pet wolf that Keith had taken in, and Ulaz was heading down to the hangars to meet them, having been held up by his work in the medical bay. 

Krolia got Regris and Acxa settled comfortably before turning to Keith. He had been rejecting their touches and reassurance for a few hours at that point, accepting nothing but his mate. It wasn’t an odd thing, the feeling of being separated from their mate was a very intense sensation the first time, and new mates wouldn’t accept any form of comfort other than the presence of their mate. 

“We’ll see Lance soon, kit. Sit down and buckle in.” Krolia said as she set their bag aside. She wasn’t surprised to hear Keith hiss to her. She wasn’t too phased, since she knew Keith would settle down after they arrived at the castle of lions. 

Ulaz soon hurried onto the pod and buckled in, giving Kolivan a chance to take off. As soon as they settled into a steady speed, they were allowed to get up and walk around. Acxa and Regris went to go cuddle Keith, simply wanting to reassure him that everything was okay. However, they were surprised when Keith hissed quietly, shuffling under a blanket. Regris whimpered and looked to the adults in the pack for guidance. He and Acxa were pulled close to Kolivan.

“Shh, he is simply reacting to the instinct to be close to his mate. He will settle down once he is close to Lance. Do not take it personally, he still loves you.” Kolivan said gently, nuzzling the two kits. 

It didn’t take as long as it usually would have to find the castle of lions. They were relatively close to the blade headquarters, making it quicker to get to. Thace made everyone buckle in as they landed, to prevent them being hurt from the jumpy landing. Keith grumbled quietly the longer they spent in the pod once the castle of lions came into view, impatient to see his mate. The moment they landed, it was a struggle to keep Keith from darting out immediately. The moment Antok let go of Keith, however, he ran off of the pod and looked around until his eyes landed on Lance.

He launched himself into Lance’s arms, purring happily. Lance was knocked onto the ground from the force of Keith running into him, wrapping his arms around Keith with a grin.

“I made a nest for us. Its pretty bad, but it’ll do the job. I just thought you’d wanna be comfortable.” Lance said. Keith smiled and laid his head on Lance’s chest.

“I’m sure it’ll be perfect. I missed you so much.” Keith said, laughing when Lance stood up and hefted Keith into his arms, carrying him to where a nest had been constructed in the lounge. As Lance had predicted, it wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t necessarily bad. Lance had clearly tried to mimic the structure of the nests he had seen Keith build, and he had succeeded for the most part. However, there were a few structural issues, but Keith didn’t mind. 

“Its perfect, Lance.” Keith said. He laid down and made himself comfortable, smacking his tail against the sheets in excitement and curling up against Lance. He nuzzled the other’s cheek and started grooming his hair back, a gesture that Lance had come to recognize as affection from the Galra. He chuckled and held Keith securely. After about fifteen minutes, the other paladins and Galra slowly shuffled in, settling into various spots around the nest. Keith smiled and hugged Shiro, purring quietly. 

“Congratulations on your mating, Keith.” Shiro said with a smile. Pidge shuffled close and smiled.

“Yeah, Keith. Congrats, you and Lance are basically married.” Pidge said. Keith nodded and smiled.

“Thanks, guys.” He said. He shuffled back to Lance and flopped down, rolling into his arms. “Have you asked Coran or Allura about how to stay connected?” He asked curiously. 

“Well, I was talking to Coran about it, and we have an idea. What if we see if your space wolf can teleport with you to the castle?” Lance suggested. Keith blinked and sat up.

“That’s a great idea, but what if it doesn’t work?” He asked. He whistled and laughed when Cosmo trotted the short distance between them and nudged Keith with his nose.

“Well, then we’ll come up with something else.” Lance said. Keith paused and wrapped his arms around the dog’s neck.

“Can you take me to my pack nest, Cosmo?” Keith asked. He gasped as he saw a flash of bright blue light, followed by a split second of blackness, and suddenly he was in his pack nest in the blade headquarters. Cosmo looked at Keith proudly and barked, making Keith laugh as he wrapped his arms around Cosmo once again. “Okay, can you take me back to Lance?” He asked curiously. 

When Keith became aware of his new surroundings in the castle, laughing happily as he pulled into Lance’s arms. He buried his face in Lance’s neck, purring quietly and massaging his shoulders. 

“Hey, babe. It worked!” He said happily. Keith nodded and relaxed in Lance’s arms, purring louder as he wrapped his tail around Lance’s waist. “Hey, before you fall asleep on me hun, can you at least let me up to grab my face mask stuff? I don’t mind if you fall asleep on me, but I do want to keep routine. Skin this beautiful doesn’t come naturally.” He said jokingly. Keith laughed and let go, rolling onto the blankets of the nest. Lance got up and retreated into the bathroom, coming back with a container of a bizarre, neon blue substance.

Lance settled down in the nest, laughing fondly as Keith immediately resumed his spot on top of him. He looked down at him and laughed.

“Hey, babe, do you mind holding my mirror for me?” He asked. Keith shrugged and grabbed the hand mirror, holding it up for him. “Thank you so much, baby. I swear I’ll be ready to cuddle in just a couple of minutes.” He said. Keith nodded and purred quietly as Lance applied the face mask, watching in shock as it faded from the neon blue to a light, faded blue that was almost white. 

“Jacket?” Keith asked quietly. Lance smiled fondly and reached over, grabbing the green-brown jacket that Keith was so fond of, handing it to his mate. Keith purred louder and put it on, settling back down.

“I love you so much, sweetheart.” Lance said, playing with Keith’s large, fluffy ears.

”I love you too, honey.” Keith said. Lance grinned at the sound of the pet name, since it was the first time Keith had called him by one. He buried his nose in Keith’s hair with a wide grin, relaxing into the nest.


End file.
